The present invention relates to a transfer device for transferring articles from the delivery end of one conveyor to the receiving end of another conveyor, with the two conveyors being so arranged that they convey articles in two directions which lie in an at least approximately horizontal plane and form with each other an angle that is other than 180.degree..
A transfer device of the above type is used, for example, in the course of a manufacturing process where articles have to be transported from one work station to another, or from one piece of machinery to another, along a path which is something other than a straight line. The reason for this is that, depending on the shape and type of article to be conveyed, it is often expensive and/or difficult, if not impossible, to provide a conveyor which is able to transport the articles other than rectilinearly, i.e., along a curved path. One reason for this is that transporting articles along a curved path makes it necessary to reduce the conveying speed along the inside of the curve and/or to increase the conveying speed along the outside of the curve. This is frequently impossible or impractical, especially when the conveyors are built in such a way that the articles on them take up as little space as possible, which means that the articles are placed closely together, thus making it physically impossible to impart to the conveyor a configuration which would allow it to move in any manner other than rectilinearly.
It is, therefore, the primary object of the present invention to provide a transfer device by means of which articles can be transferred from one conveyor to another, specifically, from the delivery end of a first conveyor to the receiving end of a second conveyor, which conveyors are so arranged that they convey articles in two directions which lie in an at least approximately horizontal plane and form with each other an angle that is other than 180.degree..